


Sweeter Than Honey

by KillerKissed



Category: Red Dead Redemption, Red Dead Redemption 2
Genre: Action, Angst, Eventual Smut, F/M, Fluff and Smut, Gangs, Gun Violence, Romance, Shootouts, Slow Burn, Thriller
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-12-09
Updated: 2019-08-11
Packaged: 2019-09-15 04:44:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 14,552
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16926744
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KillerKissed/pseuds/KillerKissed
Summary: Warning: Death and Violence





	1. Chapter 1

The gunshots woke you up before anything else. You sat straight up out of bed and looked out the window of your bedroom to see the house across the fields. You had a neighbor your dads didn’t like so well and in that moment, you finally knew why.

There was a haze of smoke and fire coming from that farm. Your siblings woke up beside you. You rushed out of the bedroom to go into your parent’s room. Your mama was already awake when you got there but daddy was still passed out. You looked at her and pointed in the direction. “There’s something going on at the neighbors.”

A heavy vibration shook the whole house. Your dad finally stirred awake and sat up. “What the hell is all the racket?”

Your mom started to get up to go see your younger children. “Hell has broken loose, dear.”

You watched your father get up and grab the shotgun in the corner of the bedroom. “Are you going over there?”

“I’m going to check on things. If it’s none of my business, I ain’t staying.”

“Can I come?” You asked, watching him look for shoes and pants.

“You are not coming!” He gave you a dirty look.

“What if someone’s hurt? I’ve been learning from the Indians and ma!”

He shook his head as he began to cover up his long Johns. “what’s going on over there ain’t none of your business, honey.” Your dad stormed off outside the house. You went back to your room to your family and sat on the edge of your bed. Your mom patted you on the shoulder before once again, settling your young siblings. The gunfire seemed to continue to go off. You shook your head and looked towards your family for a moment before going to grab your shoes.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Your mom asked, tucking the little ones in their beds.

“Daddy shouldn’t go alone and you only blessed him with girls. Someone’s gotta make sure he’s okay.”

Your mom shook her head. “He damn near raised a son with how you act. It’s only under the lord’s prayer that you have a fiancé.” She turned to you and pointed out the door. “You know where the rifle is.”

You tied your shoes quickly and grabbed your robe before running out in the main room of your home. You grabbed the rifle on the way out as you tied your robe together and ran out the front door. You made haste as the fire seemed to be burning kind of quickly over there. You saw your dad’s figure off in the distance as he was going at a steady pace. You huffed and puffed down the fields to catch up to him as quickly as possible. You were probably insane for doing this but mama was right. You were the closest thing dad had to a son.

The two of you seemed to chase the burning light. The blaze got bigger but the gunshots slowed down. You didn’t know who was losing but you knew the end was very close. You finally caught up to your dad after chasing him down through the bean fields. His shotgun rested on his shoulder as his head turned to look you dead in the eye. There was a slight frown on his mouth but a glint in his eye.

“What are you doing here, honey?”

“Mama let me come with the rifle. I gave her a very convincing argument.”

He laughed beside you, his laugh lines like caverns in his face. “It’s practically over now. You don’t have to worry about this old boy.” His hand rested against his chest. “We’ve just gotta sweep it over for the dead.”

You opened your mouth to question him before hearing some loud groaning. You grew quiet and looked around. Your dad moved past you and crouched down, moving to the sound. You followed him without hesitation because you knew this was the reason you came in the first place. You made like shadows across the land that wasn’t yours and slipped into the barn that was surprisingly not on fire. Once inside, you stood up and stood around. The doors on the other side were wide open and you knew the horses were gone. You glanced around, seeing bullet holes in places and a few souls left behind. No one seemed breathing until you made it to the other end with your dad and found a man with long shaggy brown hair and a scar. You started checking him as dad held watch, checking outside the other end of the barn. You ripped open the man’s shirt, who by looking closer now, couldn’t be too older than yourself. You started checking for wounds and saw some blood pooling beneath him. It looked like two rounds went clean through but there was a third entrance that had no exit. You started to apply pressure and ripped some of the man’s shirt up to use as a bandage. You knew this man wasn’t a local boy from the farm. This farm didn’t have any that looked his type. You looked towards your dad as shouting grew closer. There was a nervous ball in your stomach as dad got closer to you with shotgun ready. Three men turned the corner to the barn with guns down, not expecting either of you. Guns flipped up in a heartbeat but you didn’t want to watch it all go down as you continued to apply pressure.

“Who the fuck are you?” One of the voice’s asked. You glanced to see it was an older man with almost dirty blonde to grey hair.

“I’m the farmer next door.” Your father answered, shot gun ready. “I was worried what ever may be happening over here may spread over there.”

“We don’t have no business with you over there, old man.” A different man replied, one with a red coat and only five o’clock shadow.

“Oh, shit. Is that John?” A Mexican man ran over to you and landed on the ground. The man named “John” started coughing hard and you pressed down further to make sure he didn’t shake anything.

“Your friend here has two exit points but not a third. He’s bleeding bad so you can’t move here too far.” You looked at the man on the ground with you. “My mother was a nurse in the war. If we could get him home, we could get that bullet out.”

“Honey.” Dad warned, hand still on the gun with finger on trigger.

The two men still aiming moved into a more relaxed positions and put their guns away. The man with the red coat spoke up again. “I’d help carry if you all could help us. We don’t mean no harm to you. We’ve done our damage to the men that needed it.”

Your dad’s voice seemed to be behind you now. “Keep your word and we’ll save this boy’s life.”

You started to tie the scraps of cloth together to put on his wound as his friends seem to gather around you. The men started to speak to your dad as they waited.

“I’m Hosea. The one on the ground is John, the Mexican is Javier. This one is Arthur Morgan. We thank you plenty for even trying to save his life. We didn’t know where the fella went.”

You got up off your knees and grabbed the rifle from the ground. “I’ll go warn, mama. Be careful with him. He’s losing blood like a river.”

Your dad nodded and went to help the men pick their friend off the ground. “I’m Charlie, my wife’s name is Mary.”

“And everybody just calls me Honey!” You shouted before running back across the bean fields.

The night seemed to stretch on before you even hit your house again and came through the door. Your mom shrieked as you realized you had been sitting in blood. “What happened?!”

“We’ve got company, mama. There’s a man that needs saving.” You threw off your robe and went to the washing bucket by the stove to start to scrub.

“What the hell have you two got us into?” Your mom asked, right next to you scrubbing her arms.

You shook your head. “He was bleeding on the ground. I wasn’t going to let him die. I mean they did bad things to the family next door but we all know they weren’t doing no good anyway. Daddy always had a problem with them anyways. The man coming is named John. He’s got two exits and a third that’s hanging on.”

“It’s been a while since I’ve been digging for bullets. “ Your mom slung water across the floor as she shook her hands. She went to the cabinets and started digging out old supplies she got from the war. “If you all are bringing gangs into this house, it ain’t going to go to good for us.”

“Oh, mama.” You shook your hands to get the water off. “We are good people doing good things. That’s it. We ain’t joining no gang. “

“Once you’re in, you are always in. Don’t be acting a fool either.” She cleared off the kitchen table and shoved all the chairs back.

The men slowly made it to your house and started carefully getting through the front door. They dropped John off on the table and the two of you began work. The men headed outside with dad to keep them company. The night slowly rolled into morning as the two of you spent all that time digging and sewing back up. Your mom was finishing up as you stumbled out of the house to walk towards your dad and the company.

“He’s going to live but ya’ll can’t move him for at least a week.” You stated, putting your blood red hand up to block out the sun. “He can stay here with us, mama said it’s okay.”

You saw your father’s eye roll but turned to look at the other men. They all seemed to nod. You noticed all their horses had been brought to the farm. They started to go to them before the one named Arthur turned back around to come to you.

You saw him up close with his blue-green eyes staring at you. He took his dark hat off to expose a very short, neat haircut and held the hat to his chest. “I’m Arthur Morgan and I wanted to thank ya and your mother. I’ll probably be the one coming back to check on him and everything so I wanted to give ya a warning. ”

You nodded and smile at him. “You’re welcome, Mr. Morgan! We’ll be seeing you soon enough.”

“Just call me Arthur.” He nodded and put his hand back on before getting on his giant horse. The trio started to ride off down the road and your dad came to stand beside you.

“What have we got ourselves into?” He asked quietly, more to himself than you.

“An adventure.” You simply stated, patting his arm before leading him back inside.


	2. Chapter 2

You heard the hooves before you even saw the horse coming to your house. It was sometime in the afternoon and you had come back in from the bean fields to eat and held mom clean up. Some of your other siblings were already back to their chores. You raised your hand up high in the air and waved as he slowed down and tied his horse off. Arthur Morgan came walking toward you, carrying a small bag of something.

“Mr. Morgan!” You smiled. “What a good day to see you. It’s been a few days but your friend is sitting up and talking. He’s been telling my sisters stories.”

“Arthur.” He stated, shaking his head at hearing his name so formal. “They better be good stories.”

“Only the best, I assure you.” You wiped your hands on your dress and started walking towards the house. “How have you all been since that night?”

“Doing good. What about yourselves?”

“Hard at work.” Arthur followed you inside the house and you went to the couch where John was currently residing. He was asleep at the moment, still resting up from that night. “It could be a little bit before he wakes up. You want anything to drink?”

He shook his head and took his hat off in the house. “That’ll be alright.” The bag he was holding was gently placed on your kitchen table. “It is a little odd see a bunch of girls out in fields.”

You shrugged and sat down at the table. “Mama gave Daddy girls. They then decided we weren’t going to only be the sewing type. We help both of them equally with whatever we can. May be rough around the edges but we get the job done.”

“It’s good ya’ll do this with each other. A good close-knit family.”

“I assume that’s what your gang is like, ain’t it?”

He shrugged. “On the good days.”

You sat in silence for a bit and fiddled with your skirts. Arthur cleared his throat and nudged the bag closer to you. “We wanted to give this to ya’ll for being so good to him. “

You perked up at that and grabbed the bag before peeking inside. You saw the largest lump of money you had probably ever seen in your life. You clutched it to your chest automatically and looked at him. “I don’t even know if my parents will accept this from ya.”

He shrugged. “They don’t gotta but looking around here, it could do some real good to some real good people.”

You placed it gently back on the table and chewed on your bottom lip. “We could use it for about a thousand different things. I hope they take it, maybe they wouldn’t feel the need to butter up to the Sheltons then.”

He raised an eyebrow. “They borrowing money?”

You shook your head and held your hands out. “No, nothing like that. They want me to marry their boy like it’s gonna change the fact that I was raised like this.”

“Ah, a fella with money, huh?”

“Decent family with decent money and a decent reputation. I’m technically engaged, I guess.” You frowned and looked towards the ceiling. “I don’t quite like him. He’s one of those educated types that seems like he didn’t learn from the books but acts like he’s got the brains of a village. It rubs me the wrong way but I don’t see him that often so it’s not been a huge issue yet.”

“I can’t tell if I need to congratulate you or help you.”

You gave a hearty laugh and sat up in your chair. “I just feel out of place, I guess.”

He nodded to that fact. “I can see that. “

“Mama raised us good. We all went to school so we are decently educated and mama teaches us things from books she finds. We try to treat everyone equal. These are just hard concepts down here. A lot of people think we’re a little funny because of that.”

“I’m about the same way.” Arthur sat up on his chair. “I don’t see nothing wrong with either of those things. But that may be just because I’ve seen the world without being raised with a silver spoon in my mouth.”

You smiled at him. “That’s good to know. You’re one of the few.”

A groan interrupted your conversation as John pulled himself up on the couch and yawned. He opened his eyes to see the two of you at the kitchen table and gave a smile. “Well, I must be dreaming unless ole pretty boy over there really is here. “

“Haha.” Arthur fake laughed and stood up.

“I’ll leave you two to talk.” You made your way out of the house. It was about an hour before you saw Arthur leaving the house. You got off your knees to go say good-bye when your father beat you to the chase. The two of them stood and talked for a while. Your dad was shaking his head a lot but Arthur seemed to stand his ground. You watched from the shade of the tree you had been under. Your mom came out of the house holding the bag of money you had seen from earlier. You looked back at your father as he waved to Arthur. The outlaw had gotten back up on his grey and black horse and trotted down the lane.

You quickly made your way to the house. “Did ya keep it?”

Your mom looked at you for a brief moment before looking back down the lane at Arthur Morgan. “There’s no good sense in not taking it, Honey.” You got a smug look on your face and she tapped you in the cheek with her fingers. “Don’t get smart on us now. You don’t got the time on your hands to be acting too mighty.”

You giggled and hugged her before heading back towards the bean fields. You glanced back to your dad walking toward your mom for an embrace. You were happy they truly did love each other. You knew people that were married but didn’t seem to have feelings for each other. You hoped you would be different in your romantic entangling. You grew sad in your chest as you made it back towards your siblings when you realized that you weren’t. You honestly didn’t have a single feeling for that damn man you had talked yourself into getting engaged too. You were too deep into it though. Your engagement ring was hidden deep down in your clothes’ chest. You wished you’d meet someone that was better than your fiancé. There weren’t that many men left in town though.

The dark thoughts kept with you for three more following days. On the fourth day, you had more issues to worry about.

“Now you can’t be straining yourself out here! You’re gonna rip a stitch you!” You were hanging on to John as he was trying to get moving on his own. The two of you were barely outside the house after breakfast. Yesterday had been the first day he moved around very short distances. Today, he decided it was time to run around the world. His arm was around your shoulder as his weight leaned on you. You wished you had a brother as you were heaving his weight around.

“By God, I’m going to do. No offense but if I stay in that house for a night longer, I’m going to go mad. I miss being outside. I miss moving.”

“Your friend Mr. Morgan’s going to be here in no time and when he comes back, he can deal with ya! But you’re awfully heavy and I’m awfully full from biscuits. Can we not just rest?”

“I wanna move around.”

“And I want to take a nap!” You shouted, belly too full to do anything. The two of you slowly made your way out to the fields in front of the house. You continued to do laps around the front of the house until you were sure you could leave him in one spot. “And if I come back and see you’ve moved a dam inch, I’ll get you good. Do you hear me?”

John wobbled and leaned against the fence that guests hitch their horses to. “I hear ya.”

“Good. I’ll be back.” You turned on your heel after wasting most of your morning with him. You realize it was your own fault because mama wasn’t going to do it, none of your other siblings were strong enough, and you were the one that found him in the first place. You ran back into the house to finish up the dishes while the young siblings cleaned up the house. You knew dad was in the barn fixing up the covered wagon so horse back riding wouldn’t reopen John’s stitches.

You got everything finished up and was back in the fields by the time Arthur was pulling up with what looked like the man named Javier. You stayed where you were and got back to business until you heard your dad shouting for you. You stomped your way out of fields until you got all the way back over there and looked at him.

“I need you to ride in the wagon to make sure Johnny boy over there don’t get shook up like the rag doll back here.”

“You’re allowing me to go?”

Your dad gave you a funny look. “Yes?”

“By myself?”

He started to squint at you. “Yes.” You gave him a look. The two of you studied each other for a minute before he shoved the rifle in your hands. “Don’t start nothing now. This is important.”

You took the rifle and slung it over your shoulder securely. You looked towards the two men and waved. “Howdy! Good to see you again, Mr. Morgan. You too, Javier. “ You headed to the back of the wagon.

“Just Arthur, little miss. “

“I’ll learn someday!” You heaved yourself into the back of the wagon and smiled at John. “Did you get carried in here like a baby?”

“Haha.” He dry laughed and leaned against the wall of the covered wagon. You sat down across from him and put the rifle on your lap. You heard some small chatter up front before the wagon jerked forward. You waved to your dad as it pulled away, instantly happy to no longer have to be in the fields today.

“You’re a little too gung-ho to be on a trip with outlaws that could end up with more outlaws chasing us. Your fathers gotta be aware of that.

You waved your hand at John. “He is. I’m the one that shoots on sight when people steal from us.”


	3. Chapter 3

_“I don’t want to play in your yard_

_I don’t like you anymore_

_You’ll be sorry when you see me_

_Sliding down our cellar door_

_You can’t holler down our rain barrel_

_You can’t climb our apple tree_

_I don’t wanna play in your yard_

_If you can’t be good to me_

_You can’t holler down our rain barrel_

_You can’t climb our apple tree_

_I don’t wanna play in your yard_

_If you can’t be good to me.”_

You hummed the tune you had heard your mom sing to the little ones at the wagon rolled gently over rocks and hills. You had to switch sides after a bit because John was falling asleep from his medicine. You had sung to him as the medicine kicked in with his head in your lap. There was a silence now since Javier and Mr. Morgan stopped chatting a while ago. The ride was not very long time wise but it felt like forever in your soul. You watched as the trees passed with every motion of the horses pulling forward. You stopped humming to check on John.

“That was awfully pretty.” A rough voice broke your thoughts.

You looked up to the front to see Mr. Morgan peeking back at the two of you. It sent a smile across your face at the compliment and some warmth in your cheeks. “Thank ya. Your friend seemed to like it.”

“He warms up to women pretty easy.” Javier added, “but your voice is easy on the ears.”

You giggled and glanced back out the opening in the back and went to relax before seeing something catch your eye. Your whole body stiffened in a moment. “I think we may have company.”

Javier turned to look. “We got two gang members on horses.

“We better make it quick then. Hold on, Miss Honey.” Arthur yelled and spurred the horses on. They quickened the pace and the wagon shook hard with every jostling movement. Your hand found the rifle sitting beside you and clung to it hard. It wouldn’t be the first time you’d need to shoot at someone but you always got scared right before the first shot. You looked forward to see Arthur aiming backward. Two shots rang out. You looked back to see no one behind. Dust kicked up from how fast you were all going now. The moment seemed swept under the rug.

After that, it didn’t take much longer to go to their camp. You seemed to have been running on adrenaline after the incident, a little nervous tick in your fingers against the rifle. You did keep a good hold on John through most of it. He only almost fell in the floor twice. You saw the patch of green and trees. It was a pretty little place. The wagon stopped moving at the men disappeared for unfamiliar faces came to the back of the wagon with Javier. They helped get John out of the back of the wagon. You got up and stretched your body as Arthur appeared, hand out to help you. You took it and tried to gracefully get out of this wagon. Your dress skirts would have none of that which led to you tripping out of it. Arthur caught you with his strong grip and pulled you close to his body. You looked up at him with big eyes as he sat you carefully back down on firm ground and patted you on the back.

“You doing okay?” He asked, tone soft when it is just you two.

You nodded, giving him an appreciative look. “Thank you, I would have eaten the dirt if you hadn’t been there.”

“Can’t let a little lady fall. Don’t think it’d be quite right.” You nodded and ducked your head a little bit to avoid too much eye contact and glanced back towards where the men took John. Arthur’s hand slipped away from yours and motioned towards the camp. “I can walk ya around the camp site and show ya around. It ain’t much and you can see everything here but…” He shrugged.

“Sure. I’d like that. I don’t go outside of the house and town much. It’s nice to see new things.”

He walked ahead of you, his spurs making noise as he did. You followed him as he showed you the horses, naming each of them by breed and the names they were given. You eyed each of them with wonder as you passed before Arthur led you through camp, telling you whose tent belonged to who and what they did. You passed his tent with a glance, seeing a table with a small flower on it. It sent a smile across your lips but you continued on after him as you made a full circle through the camp back to the wagon. Arthur looked at for a moment and then looked at you.

“Your father sold us the wagon so we don’t gotta take that back. But I guess we outta get you back to ‘em.”

“That’s probably a good idea.” You mumbled. “Not too excited to go back to the fields.”

“You’ll be less excited with what your father told me.” You tilted your head to the side as he continued, going towards his huge horse. “He’s buying them cornfields that we, err, helped confiscate.”

You groaned and looked towards the sky. “Now I’m working corn!”

“At least that farm of yours is getting to be a big deal now.”

You nodded. “Maybe he’ll hire some help now.”

“Y'all sure do need it.” He grabbed your waist without warning and plopped you onto his horse before swinging up himself. You blinked a couple times as being so easily handled before getting settled. The horse moved and started forward back the way you came. You felt jostled, not used to being on horseback. You snuggled up behind Arthur and wrapped your arms around his waist. You felt the man stiffen in front of you before slowing relaxing on the ride there. It was quiet and comfortable for a very long time. You had almost fallen asleep with your head rested against his back when you felt the rumble of his voice shake his body.

“I got a question.”

You made a soft noise in reply and sat up a little bit.

“Why do they call you Honey?”

You laughed softly. “Because I like to stay busy. Busy as a honey bee. Mama called me that when I was really little once and it’s stuck ever since.”

“So you liked to be called honey?”

“By most people that I know. Some people I don’t want calling me that. “He made a sound and got real quiet. You smiled just a little bit and leaned forward. “You can call me that if you’d like. I’ll remember to call you Arthur.”

He chuckled. “I get permission, do I?”

You mhmm’d and looked over his shoulder to see a familiar area. You were getting close to home. A sigh patted your lips as you sat up and stretched, fingers reaching for the sky. Arthur glanced back and you caught his eye. You smiled at him and he looked back forward.

“Thank ya again. You didn’t have to take me home.”

“Can’t let a little lady just wander the land back home. There might be outlaws out here.” You could hear the amusement in his voice.

Your house came into view as you passed a hill. “You’d know wouldn’t ya?”

Arthur maneuvered the horse towards the tying post and hopped off, securing both the horse and yourself before helping you back down. Safely on the ground, you patted his shoulder and looked towards the house. You could see mama working inside, probably getting ready to start dinner.

“Would you wanna stay?” You asked, reaching for him as he got on top of his horse. The sun behind him cast Arthur in shadow. He looked at you and turned his head. “For supper!” You added quickly, pointing towards the house.

“I don’t wanna intrude on what ya’ll are doing.”

“You won’t! Daddy likes you, I can tell.” You nodded and patted his horse. “We’ll get her fed too. What’s her name again?”

He looked sheepish at that moment. “Petunia.”

You giggled but coughed to cover it up.”Petunia the war horse, all right. We can get her some food and you some food.”

Arthur thought on this for a moment. “Might as well.”

“Good! I’ll go tell mama we’ve got a guest.” You bolted off towards the house to let her know. You could hear Arthur having a good chuckle behind you.


	4. Chapter 4

You ran through the rows of corn, the ever stretching silence seemed to pound in your ears as ever stalk passed. You reached the other side of the vegetation and burst through, gasping for air as you slowed to a trot. The house that had once stood there was no collapsed and gone. The barn and everything else was repaired and cleaned from the shootout. Your lungs needed a moment to catch up.

The hand on your shoulder made you jump hard and you jerked away before facing them. Arthur moves his hand away, pulling his hands back to stick his thumbs in his suspenders. “Didn’t mean to scare ya, Honey.”

“Oh, Arthur!” You moved forward and patted his face lightly. He smiled at your touch and you laughed softly. “You scared the hell outta me. Whatcha doing?”

He tilted his head towards the corn. “I’m helping your pa with his crop. It’s a good way to make coin and help out.”

“I didn’t know that! There’s been so much change since he bought the extra land. I don’t know some of the faces around here.” You pulled back a bit and looked towards the extra buildings.

“What are ya doin’ out here? Thought you were still on beans.”

You wrinkled your nose and turned back to him. “I am, I’m currently hiding right now.” He raised his eyebrow but didn’t ask. “My, umm, my fiancé is here. Daddy’s talking to him now.”

“Oh.” There was a heavy silence now. It made your heart hurt for a moment. You moved forward to be closer to him.

You fiddled with your fingers. “I don’t wanna marry ‘im, Arthur. I can’t. Daddy’s talking to him.”

“Oh!” There was a realization that crossed Arthur’s features. You realized now being so close to him that he looked nice like that. He didn’t have the long coat and hat covered him up. You could actually see Arthur Morgan. His sleeves were rolled over to show his strong arms. You fiddled with your fingers more as thoughts turned a bit impure.

“I gave the ring back, Arthur.” You added, looked up to him. The sun was beating down on the both of them. Before he could speak, you could hear the shouting. The corn rustled with the wind as if the anger of your fiancé summoned it. “I’ve gotta go. It ain’t pretty what I just did.”

“I’ll come with ya.” He started towards the corn before lent his hand out to you. “You don’t gotta do this alone, Honey.”

You almost teared up at that. The ache in your throat started as well as you grabbed his hand. “Thank you, Arthur.”

The two of entered into the sea of crops. You felt the need to get sick as you grew closer to exiting the corn again. The shouting was loud. Arthur was by your side as the two of you got back to the scene where Billie Shelton was screaming in the face of your daddy who looked to be yelling just as much. You let go of Arthur’s hand as his eyes seem to find you. They grew wide for Billie followed his gaze to you. You watched as Billie turned on his hill and came rushing over you like a mad man. Arthur was stiff beside you. You really had no idea to see the look of anyone’s face. Your ears started to ring as you stared directly into the face of Billie. The way his blue eyes were squinting with every verbal insult seemed to gloss over your train of thought. His curly brown hair shook with anger as he was red in the face. He grabbed a hold of you and shook you hard, yelling in your face as you suddenly realized how much you actually hated this man. With all the muster you could handle, you inhaled deeply and spit in his face.

Everything went quiet for a moment. It was like the earth stood still for a moment. But it sped up as soon as Billie made contact with your face. You hit the ground around the same time as Billie did. Arthur was on top of him as you sat up from the earth with daddy running, kicking dirt up behind him. Arthur’s fists continuously made contact with Billie’s face. You could see blood splattering as your ex-fiancé tried to fight him. Daddy got over and dragged Arthur off his limp body. Billie rolled on to his stomach and spit blood, making himself gag. He slowly got up, screaming profanities. “You don’t fucking know me! You goddamn redneck pieces of shit! I’ll own your goddamn land, your crops, and your asses! You’ll fucking rot! You don’t know how I fucking am!”

Billie pointed to you and shook his fist. “I’ll kill you before I let anybody take what’s rightfully mine, you peasant bitch!”

“I won’t hold my breath, Billie Shelton!” You screamed, grabbing the dirt from the ground and flinging it at him. He ran from it and back to his horse.

“You step on my land again and I’ll fucking kill you!” Daddy yelled from beside Arthur, shaking his fist.

Arthur moved away quickly and got on the ground beside you. You started to touch your face, feeling the pressure building in your cheek and nose. There was a metallic taste in your face. Arthur turned you gently towards him, checking you over with concern. The tears started spilling down but it wasn’t over being hurt or Billie. You had no idea why you were crying at this moment. He pulled you close and held you as dad came around to check on you. After all the commotion, people had come in from the friends and your siblings from the house. Your mama rushed over to see the aftermath.

“It ain’t gonna be good when he tells his family.” Your ma’s voice shook a bit.

“He ain’t shit.” Your daddy spits on the ground.

Your ma nudged him in the end. “Shouldn’t have let him anywhere near her! I told you his family wasn’t nothing good! They are liars, killers, wife beaters, and more.”

Your dad just shook his head and held your hand. “I had hopes he was gonna be good to her.”

You looked at Arthur as he held you, the man with worry all over his face. “Arthur…it ain’t going be good for you either.”

“I can take care of myself, Honey.”

Pa huffed beside you and stood up. “Arthur, that ain’t it. This is bigger than that. His family’s got money. It’s going to get real ugly.”

“How ugly?” Arthur asked, his fingers gently rubbing your cheek.

“They pay bad men to do things for ‘em. Let’s just call it for what it is. It’s a gang.”

You sniffed and looked up at your parents. “You never told me.”

Your mama looked perplexed. “There’s a lot you don’t know, Honey.”


	5. Chapter 5

It had been about a month and a half since the whole incident. You have not seen hide nor hair of Billie Shelton since it has happened. You have heard rumors about yourself. He’s spreading lies you that you were cheap. There was a rumor you were pregnant which caused the engagement to fall through. You had heard that people paid money for you to do activities. Your dad came back furious every time from town. You had kept to the fields because mama told you to stay out of the public eye for a bit. The Sheltons were more powerful than you originally thought.

Arthur was gone too. You did not think you would miss the times when you were still engaged but when that ring was buried beneath clutter, Arthur was still in the fields. You would see him almost every day. He had left a few days after saying his gang needed him. He wouldn’t look you in the eye he was telling pa about leaving. You did not know heartbreak until that moment.

You didn’t realize when you caught feelings for Arthur Morgan until you saw him beating the holy hell out of Billie Shelton. You didn’t realize how much you liked him until you finished out the farming season without seeing his face every day.

There was no time to grieve for anything you. It was time to prepare for winter. Autumn was licking at your backs earlier than usual this year. It was time to prepare the houses, all the barns, and the animals for the upcoming snows. At least during this time of year, you can return to learning the ways of medicines between mama and the Indians. You told your parents that it would be time for you to be coming back and forth again. They agreed with some persuasion but now it came with a price. You’d have to carry a pistol with you everywhere you go.

They had shared a little information that they had heard rumors of the Sheltons being a not so wholesome family, with a hand in debt collecting and dirty money. They had looked past this when the discussion of Billie Shelton starting to court you. He had seemed nice enough. He had gone to college. He was clean cut and had money. What better man could be suited for their oldest darling daughter? Little had they known that he became violent. They had never wanted you to get hurt in all of that but they were happy to know before you were legally married and couldn’t get out of an abusive marriage.

You were full of gloom. Your heart was heavy and all the stress of all of it weighed even heavier on your shoulder. The horse’s shoes gently padded against the soft ground. You were taken a shortcut to the pumpkin patch. It was a newer thing around these parts but as of last year, you had really grown to like them. The only bad part was that is was as far as Wallace Station. That was the closest landmark that you could think of.

Either way, it was a trip for you. You were good for the first twenty minutes but then your mind wondered. It was just pretty depressing all around. You didn’t even really look up when you passed people on the roads. You mumbled a simple greeting and kept your cloak bundled up around you with a hood covering your head. You were in a foul mood by the time you even made it to the pumpkin patch. By the time you bought the pumpkins, paid for them, put them on the horse, and started back home you were so deep into your own self-pity that you hadn’t even heard the voices trying to make conversation to you. You looked up to a pack of horses with one slowly making its way to you. Your whole body stiffened to the point your back popped and you thought of the pistol that was in your side bags with the pumpkins. You were only soothed once you saw the face of the rider.

“John Marston. You sure did scare the hell outta me.” You turned your horse to mosey on over.

“Well, I outta! Ain’t never seen someone so deaf as you are.” He laughed. “What are you doing this way of Valentine, girlie?”

“Pumpkins!” You patted your saddlebags with all the baby pumpkins you had picked. “ I can’t get none of the good big ones so I gotta stock up on the little ones.”

“Little far for something like that, don’t ya think?”

You waved your hand at him to dismiss the idea. “It’s fine. It’s good to get out and about to especially after the farming season is over.”

“I heard about that. Arthur was pretty bummed he couldn’t finish out the season.” John steadied his horse and nodded towards the group. “We are just getting back from a job. Arthur’s group should have gotten back a few days ago. I’ll tell him he needs to stop back by and see ya.”

“Oh, you don’t gotta do that.” You sheepishly laughed. ”There’s not much reason to come out anymore.”

John gave you a knowing look. You raised an eyebrow at him as face changed into a man that just came upon a realization. He even laughed to himself before pointing his finger at you.”I’ll tell him that there’s a pretty girl that needs to be checked on. He’ll come running.”

“Haha.” You mocked him. “You’re very funny, John.”

“I’ve got an idea for you. Why don’t you come home with us? We’ll feed ya and escort ya back home.”

“Oh, I can’t intrude on you guys like that.”

He gave you a devilish grin. “Honey, you saved my life. I don’t think there are many people that would be more welcomed in camp.”

You felt heat rush to your face. “I guess I could.” You looked towards the sun and it’s position in the sky.” As long as I get home before nightfall.”

“Easy!” He patted your horse and turned around on his. “Follow me.”

The trip was easy. You followed his small group back. Upon a closer look, you realized you knew some of the men. There was Hosea, Javier, and of course, John. The faces you did not know belonged to Micah, Sean, and Lenny which John told you later. Sean was right up next to you for most of the ride even though John kept waving him up. You could tell that man couldn’t take a hint. He oozed sweetness like a candy store. You didn’t trust him as far as you could throw him. Upon entering the camp, most of the crew went separate ways. John helped you hitch your horse and led you through camp as he talked idly. You were listening intently until you laid eyes on Arthur Morgan.

There he was, the late day sun hitting him like he was a lost angel. It was illuminating his sweaty skin as the man was shirtless for the first time before your eyes. He was hard at work slamming a heavy ax through chunks of wood. You were memorized by the way his strong muscles moved with every swing. The long pieces of his hair were stuck to his forehead. You watched as he stood straight up to adjust his posture and make a sweep of the camp. His eyes caught yours and you looked away before there was an exchange as John led you somewhere else. You’d forgotten all about what John had been talking about.


	6. Chapter 6

Arthur Morgan would be a man that would haunt your dreams. You had to physically forget that you had just seen him to concentration on what John was talking about. 

But that was hard when John was talking about him. 

“What a pretty boy, am I right? Having to show off like that to chop work.” He laughed hard and led you over to fire-pit where a brunette woman was sitting. “Sit here. This is my wife, Abigal. Abigal, this is Honey. She’s the one-“ 

“The one that saved you!” She shot up like a weed from where she was sitting and took ahold of you like you were a lifeline. “I sure am happy to meet you. I didn’t get to talk to ya the first time you were here because I was so dang gum brain fired after hearing that John was hurt that I didn’t have no dam sense to thank the person that saved him.” 

“It’s nice to meet ya too, Abigal. It was no big deal. I was just doing what I had to do.” 

She patted your back and led you to sit beside her. “If only everyone was like you! The world would be a different place.” 

John touched her shoulder. “I’ll be right. I’m going to go get hurt some food.” 

Abigal waved him off and patted your leg again before returning to her work. She seemed to be snapping green beans. “Now, back to girl talk. I heard ole Arthur was sure working hard on that farm of yours. Your daddy owns a lot of land?” 

“He does now. We bought the farm that your gang…ummm…freed up.” 

“Well, dang! That sure worked out good, didn’t it?” Abigal smiled and continued her work. “Arthur’s a quiet kind of guy, ain’t he?” 

You nodded and grabbed some green beans to help her with. “He sure is.” 

“Sad thing when he didn’t get to help out for the reason of the season. But I am glad he beat the poor piss out of that ex of yours.” 

“Oh gosh, did you hear about that?” 

Abigal laughed. “We hear everything. But even if we didn’t, Arthur sure had a fire up his ass when he came back. I ain’t never seen him that furious. Hosea had to take him for a walk.” 

“Yeah, my ex is a horrible person. I guess way worse than I originally thought. His family is doing some dirty stuff. Either we were blind or just never really wanted to see.” You sighed and put the beans back in the pot. “I’ve never been hit before.” 

“And you’ll never be hit again.” The rough voice behind you send the hairs on the back of your neck to a standing position. You tilted your head back and looked to see Arthur with a shirt on, standing beside John who had a bowl. You felt the heat in your face come up as John handed you the food before sitting by Abigail. 

Arthur moved to sit beside you but not on the same log. You thanked John and sat quietly. Abigal shifted beside you before speaking up. “Why’s that, Arthur? You gonna protect this poor girl through her whole entire life?” 

The heat was in your ears now. Arthur leaned closer to the fire. “If I have to.” 

“It ain’t no chore, Arthur. I’m sure many men would like to protect miss Honey over here even though I got a good feeling she could protect yourself mighty fine. Maybe ole Sean would. He was awfully friendly on the ride here.” 

“Too friendly.” You grumbled, eating the chow John had brought. 

“Well, Sean could If she wanted,” Arthur grumbled. 

Abigal snapped some more beans.”But you’re a better fist fighter, Arthur. He’s a good hunter too.” She whispered the last part to you. 

You smiled softly but shook your head. “Nobody needs to worry about me. I got it.” 

“It’s about to be winter, Honey!” Abigal exclaimed, looking towards John. “Wouldn’t you want someone to snuggle up to?” 

John laughed. “You’re pushing too hard, Abby.” 

Arthur shifted in his seat again. You ate on your chow until the bowl was empty so you wouldn’t have to talk. You could hear the idle chatter in the camp. It was a soft buzz of movement. You enjoyed it out here. Your eyes flickered to the sky and watched the clouds floating by. How nice it’d be to live out here. The open space would be a dream. Could you live a life like that? A life of wild adventure? 

“Honey.” 

You blinked and looked back, seeing John watching you with a raised eyebrow. “Sorry, I’m drifting in thought.” 

“I was telling Arthur how you wandered all by yourself to get some pumpkins.” He motioned towards the man himself. 

You looked to him as his warm eyes were on you. “I bought a bunch of little ones.” You told him. “I do some recipes with them. Daddy said I could get some of the more expensive ingredients this year to make some desserts. Do you want one?” 

“I’d love one.” Arthur nodded. “You like to cook?” 

“I’m less of a cook and more of a baker. I’ve got a sweet tooth.” You smiled at him and shrugged your shoulders. “Either way, I’m good for it.” 

“I’m sure whatever you do is divine.” He kept meeting your glance. 

“Why, thank you. I’m hoping you still think that when I get around to making it.” 

Arthur rubbed his hands down his pants and stretched his back. “So, you rode down here by yourself?” 

“I sure did. I took the pistol with me though.” 

John piped up. “Probably be a good idea for someone to take her back.” 

“Mighty fine idea,” Abigal added as she picked up her pot. “Help with this, John.” 

You watched as the two of them wandered off before you focused back on Arthur. You watched the way the lowering sun cast shadows off the two of you. You gazed away from him once again and played with the bowl. Arthur cleared his throat beside you. 

“I could always take ya back if need be.” 

You smiled at the ground. “That’d be fine by me, Arthur.”


	7. Chapter 7

The fire crackled louder as a log was flung onto the fire. The sun was beginning to lower itself in the sky. It began to grow late. 

Arthur stood up from the log and wiped his hands on his pants before holding his hand out to you. “Come on, Honey. We better get going. I don’t know when John’s getting back and I don’t want that dad of yours starting to worry.” 

You reached up and took his hand, gently standing. A couple of bones seemed to pop as you were sitting too long. “Thank you. You don’t have to though. I could get home by myself. 

“That ain’t right. I’ll take ya. There ain’t no sense in allowing that anyway. You never know what’s lurking in this county.” He gave you a soft look before leading you to the horses. Your hand was still in his. You were lifted into your saddle before he found his. 

The two of you took off down the dirt roads. It was quiet for a while. But the silence was not your forte at this moment. 

“Do you hate me?” 

Arthur about choked in his saddle. “Excuse me?”

“You pretty much left after Billie. I ain’t worth much now especially since Billie been going around town running his tongue like it’s a dam race.”

“Honey, I don’t hate you. “

“You left after the incident. Daddy’s been asking about you, he don’t ask about nobody.”

“I have missed his humor.” 

“That’s another thing, nobody likes his humor. He isn’t funny!” You laughed. 

Arthur chuckled beside you and moved his horse closer to yours. You went along like that for a while before he continued the conversation. “I didn’t come back because I hate you, Honey. I didn’t wanna scare ya. I beat that man and not too lightly.” 

“That didn’t scare me, Arthur! I ain’t scared of you. You protected me from him.” 

He sighed softly and grumbled to himself before speaking up. “I ain’t never been that mad that quick. Something snapped when he touched you. I wasn’t going to do nothing when he was screaming. I was going to leave that to your daddy. But when he touched you…” You watched as his knuckles turned white as they wrapped around the leather of the reign. 

“Nothing will ever make me scared of you. Do you not remember how we met?” You asked softly. 

Arthur just shrugged beside you. “That night was a blur of smoke and bullets until I left your farm.” 

“You were a man in a scarlet coat like the devil with a gun. You weren’t scary then and you aren’t scary now. If anything, you showed you were a fighter.” 

“I ain’t no good though. I’m not a good man.” 

“I don’t care about that!” You threw your hands in the air. 

Arthur looked over at you from beneath his hat. “You don’t get it, Honey!” 

“Me?” You gestured to yourself before reaching over and yanking the reins from his hands. “Arthur Morgan! I am not a city girl naïve to the real world or a preacher’s daughter with a blind over my eyes! I was raised on this land, this dirt, this farm. I will not stand to be underestimated.” You tossed the reigns back at him. “So you either wanna spend time with me or not.” You clicked your tongue and spurred your horse on. 

You could feel the ache in the back of your throat like you always did when you got too upset. You knew you had thrown a tantrum but gosh darn it, that man had bit into something that bothered you. 

The wind flew past as your horse hurried on, finding the roads all too familiar as home came ever closer. It was at the edge where the roads melted into your land that you noticed the sounds of not only your stead. You yanked in the reigns which forced your horse to slow down and turn at the entrance of the lane as Arthur was bulldozing ahead on Petunia. He stopped just in front of you and let his horse go circles around you. 

“Now, goddamit.” He yanked his hat off and sat it in front of him on the saddle as he kept making laps. 

“What? You got words, Mr. Morgan?” 

“Words? I ain’t-a man with good words. Not out loud anyway.” He slowed his horse down to be in front of you. “I got…I got something…I..” He leaned back and started digging through the saddlebags for something. You watched with furrowed brows as he pulled a book out. It was brown in color and looked to maybe be brown. Arthur flipped through the pages before shoving it towards you. 

You took it gingerly in your hands as if it was made of glass and looked down to see a lovely illustration of what seemed to be yourself with text underneath it. You looked at him before looking back down. 

“ There’s a girl. She’s wild like the woods. Sometimes when she looks at me, I don’t know what to say. She’s got a smile on her that could light the darkest days. I never thought I’d be so thankful for John getting shot. I might be brave one day to say something.” 

You looked back at him to see him looking down at his horse. You reached out to him and watched him jolt in surprise. The sun was setting and causing shadows to dance across the ground. “I like this, Arthur.” 

He pushed his lips together and wiggled his mouth like he was trying to shake the words together in his cheeks. Upon opening his mouth to speak, he was interrupted by the sound of wood hitting wood loudly. “I told you to be back here before sundown, Honey! Who are you off with?!” Your daddy’s voice echoed down that long dirt road. 

Arthur flipped his horse around so you could see him early. You both waved to the older man. You turned to Arthur. “Stay for dinner and you can hear his humor that you missed.”


	8. Chapter 8

There was laughter into the late evening. Maybe Arthur was right. Your dad could have a sense of humor. 

The air was different after the two of you had slightly confessed your feelings for each other. You felt you needed to be more clear in it. You were slightly embarrassed still in the way you acted. Arthur seemed to be comfortable after everything. Dinner went swiftly. Mama always made enough to feed an army with all the babies she had at the table so one more could never hurt. The room was light with humor and fun. All the siblings were in good spirits and dad always had a liking for Arthur. You really thought that dad must have seen a son he never had in him. 

He raised too many tough girls. 

The dinner plates were taken away. All the sisters wandered off to places to be. You helped mama clean up everything. Arthur and daddy were in the front room, chatting like old hens. It was a sight to see. 

But the night disappeared. It was past time for Arthur to go. It was getting late. Mama had gone to their bedroom to prepare for bed. Daddy had yawned too many times now. The crops needed to be tended too. It was the last bits of ending the season. Arthur excused himself as if he sensed he should be the bigger man. Dad would never tell you to go. He’d stay and talk all night. 

You rubbed your eyes, feeling the tingles of sleep trying to call you to bed. But there was something you had to go before Arthur Morgan left. You told your dad goodnight while you watched him disappear into the bedroom. You slipped out the front door with a lantern in your hand. 

You could see his dark silhouette off in the night as he readied his horse for a trip back. The moon was gone with the cloudy night stealing away the light. You walked up to him, the lantern making the shadows dance. 

“You trying to slip out of here without saying anything, Mr. Morgan?” You asked, hand very softly reaching his shoulder. 

He moved into your touch before looking your way, the rim of his hat almost hiding his eyes. “I told you to call me Arthur.” 

“Maybe I need to be reminded.”

“How should I do?” He asked, turning fully to face you. 

“You could kiss me.” You tried to bite back the smile. Arthur looked down, hiding behind his hat for a moment. You slid your hand down from his shoulder to tangle your fingers with him. “C’mon, Mr. Morgan.” You murmured, moving a little closer to see beneath his hat. 

He was hiding a smile. His eyes flickered to you and his smile grew a little bit bigger before he started getting shy. You laughed softly and pulled away. He reached for you but you shook your head. “C’mon.” 

“Why?” You looked towards the house. “I could go to bed right now. I could just go, you know?”

“Girl…” His tone was playful with a dash of warning. It was too late to play games. 

You smiled. “I could count sheep!”

He moved closer to you, taking your hand and pulling you closer to him. There was brief hesitation on his face. Arthur stayed content holding your hand. “I really need to get going, Honey. “

“Then go.” You mumbled, looking down at your hands that were in his. 

“It’s hard, Honey. You don’t know things. “ He whispered. 

“Then tell me everything.” The world felt like it belonged to just you two. 

Arthur seemed to chew this over. “That’s for another night maybe. Some evening that is less dark.” He cupped your cheek so lightly that it felt like he was scared to touch you. 

“Could you at least kiss me then? That why I know I wasn’t dreaming about that novel entry.” You looked around to the empty darkness as if it held answers. 

“Are you sure you want that?”

“I’ve asked twice, Arthur.” You made eye contact with him again. 

There was a ghost of a smile on his features like he couldn’t believe it. You watched as he slowly leaned forward, cupping your face in his rough hands. You felt like you were in heaven as he pressed forward. His lips found yours. It was soft at first. Light as could be but that wasn’t enough for you. You pulled him into the kiss more, wanting to let him know he didn’t have to be gentle with you. You wrapped your arms around his neck. His grip on you tensed but slowly loosened before his arms went around your waist. The kiss turned into several smaller kisses as it felt more like neither of you wanted to let go of the other. 

But ultimately, it was Arthur who pulled away first. You were too starry-eyed to care though. This was something you had thought about for a while now and it was good to have it out. You stared up at his face with those soft eyes of his staring back down at you. You kissed the soft smile on his lips before moving your hand down to his chest. You patted him, happy to be able to feel the broad chest before you. “I think you could go home safely now, Arthur.” 

“I think you’re right about that.” He kissed your forehead before letting go of you. You felt like the luckiest girl in the world. You stepped back from him and the horse to watch as he gracefully pulled himself up. Arthur got ready to go, looking back at you one more time. You waved to him to let him know it was okay. 

He disappeared into the darkness. It all felt like a dream. You giddily ran back to the house and slipped inside, your heart ramming into your chest like a train. You touched your mouth softly, feeling your lips as if he was still there. You gave a soft squeal and ran off to your shared bedroom to get ready for bed. 

How could you sleep now though? The buzz of love was coursing through your veins. When would you see him again?


	9. Part Nine

The smoke rolled out of the barrel of the gun before the body hit the ground. It was a bandit in the night. A stranger up to no good.

On a night like this, it is pitch black. You do not live in the luxury of the city with their street lights. Every home with a little glow about them. You lived in the middle of nowhere. No neighbors to be seen from. No candle in someone’s bedroom to illuminate the monsters away.

Your dad stood next to you with the gun in his hand. There had been whispers of bandits lurking the countryside. Every night for two weeks as autumn moved in steadily, your dad had sat on your front porch in the dark all night long. He was in waiting.

You awoke in your bed that night, not long into slumber’s grasp as something pulled you from sleep. You awoke to your vision blurred from sleepiness. You stared a hole into the ceiling before pulling yourself from your bed and getting up. All of your siblings were far from conscious as you crept past their dreams to the outside. You inhaled deeply, the cool air filling your lungs.

“Keep very still, Honey.” Your dad’s voice came from behind you.

Every hair on your body stood straight up. There was something wrong in the air.

The gun went off and you about lost it. You ducked hard only to hear something in the distance make a noise before dropping to the ground.

You looked back towards your dad. He got off the porch and started trodding off into the night where it swallowed him whole. You followed quickly.

“Oh gosh.” You murmured, seeing the dead man on the ground.

Your dad poked the body before looking all around. “Don’t tell your mama.” You only nodded, unsure if he was even looking at you. “It’s not warm so we don’t have that many men on the farm no more.”

“You think more will come?” You asked.

“I think so from what I’ve heard. There’s a whole lot of hell breaking loose…would you do me a favor, Honey?”

“Of course.”

“Find that Arthur Morgan.”

Since your kiss, the two of you had been seeing each other in passing. Arthur has been stuck debt collecting for that leader of that gang he’s in. The more you know, the more you do not know if the gang is a good thing. But you will never be vocal about that.

Once morning came you road off like the wind. Daddy was covering for you with ma. The little sleep had gotten last night was outweighed by how long it took to drag that bandit’s body off to the hogs. It was sure long gone now.

The hooves of your horse stomped the ground in hard as you moved ever closer to the campsite. You understood why daddy was asking for help. It was easier when you had one farm. But now there’s twice as much land. Twice as much to lose over something stupid like a bandit that gets a good shot.

Upon entering, it was Dutch that greeted you. You had a few words with the man but you did not make you any less friendly. You hopped down from your horse and took the reigns. “Where’s Arthur?”

“He’s been out for a few days. They should be back any time now. It was a quick job.” He stated, checking his pocket watch like he had better things to do. “The boys said you’re a good one so you can hang here for as long as you’d like.”

You tied your horse up. “Thank you. I’ll stay until before sundown. If he doesn’t come today, I’ll be back another time.”

He nodded and left you alone. You’d been here just enough to know your way to Arthur’s tent. You ventured through the camp, getting nods from faces you knew but were not friends with. You didn’t see John or Abigal. Sean was nowhere in sight as well. You heard some laughter and saw a blonde man in a hat but paid him no mind as you slid into Arthur’s sleeping area. You took a look around before feeling so exposed. Despite living with so many siblings, this was something entirely different.

You pulled down the sides of his tent to get a feel of privacy. You sat down on his cot and stared at the wall for a second. It felt almost unreal. You ran your fingers over the blanket and then the pillow. This was a part of Arthur’s life. It was apart of him. You had never dreamed to be like this with someone. You were never like this with Billie.

You curled up on the cot, his scent washing over you. It reminded you of how close you got to him. How his kiss had sent your heart into a frenzy. You smiled to yourself and looked at the table next to you. There was a flower on the table in a tiny glass cup. You got lost into thought while staring at it.

You really did need Arthur’s help but this was definitely a little selfish. The bandits were a problem. Maybe Arthur could move away from this tiny tent and move into the house where the shootout went.

That wouldn’t be odd at all.

You hid your face as if it could remove your thoughts from you. Your feet started kicking with frustration. You hadn’t felt this way about any boy or man. You clutched your chest and rolled over, shoving yourself into his pillow.

To be honest, time slipped away after that. You hadn’t realized it but you fell asleep at some point. A soft hand was placed on your shoulder. They gently stroked your skin before you felt the weight of something covering your body. You snuggled into the weight and opened your eyes to see Arthur sitting on the ground beside his cot, his eyes on the ground as he scribbled into his notebook. You dared not move a muscle for a moment. You wanted to take it all in.

It was as if he felt a presence though. He looked to you so your gazes met. “Hello, Honey.”


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning: Death and Violence

You reached your hand out for Arthur Morgan to take. He touched it softly before moving a little closer to see you in the dimly lit tent. 

“When did you get back? I don’t remember falling asleep.” You whispered. 

“I don’t know when you fell asleep. I came into you all snuggled up. I didn’t wanna wake you…I ain’t been back for very long.” 

“It’s good to see you.” You whispered, fingers entwining with his. “I came to see you.” 

“You didn’t have to.” He laid his head on the cot so your faces weren’t very far away from each other. 

“I’d like to see it was for purely selfish reasons but adult, it’s not. Daddy needs your help.” 

He grew concerned. “What’s wrong?”

“We’ve been killing bandits left and right. It ain’t getting safe as winter starts to roll it. People were starting to get hungry. They want what is ours. He’s getting scared because there is so much land now. He was wondering if you and some of your boys could come help.” 

“I don’t know if Dutch will let us be away for too long. He’s got big ideas.” 

“I’m sorry to ask this of you, Arthur. He just didn’t know who else to ask.” You reached out to stroke his face. “You don’t gotta. I understand.” 

“It’s a hard place to be in.” 

You just nodded. The two of you stayed in silence, just enjoying the other’s presence. You could see the darkness outside of the tent and frown. “I need to get home. I wasn’t supposed to stay this long, I’m afraid.” 

“Do you need me to take you back?” Arthur started to stand up. 

“No, no…it’s okay.” You pulled the blanket away and got up. “I can do it.” 

“I don’t like you going off by yourself.” Arthur murmured, hands on his belt. 

You patted his chest before moving out of the tent. “Don’t you worry about it.” You made your way back to the horses and got up into the saddle, seeing Arthur’s dark shadow against the illumination of the campfires. Your family could survive. You didn’t need the help but you just wished he could have come. 

Actually, you shouldn’t be so bold with that statement. Your family probably did need help. You tsked at yourself before pulling on the reigns of the horse and riding off into the night.

The moon was winking at you from behind the clouds which helped you ride home. The air was brisk. Winter could almost be felt. When you rode closer to your home, you whistled like your daddy had shown you as a girl. You didn’t hear anything back. You felt that it was a little strange but it was late. 

You left your horse in the barn and hurried to the house. No one was on the porch and the shotgun your dad liked to use wasn’t at his chair. You gently opened the door to your home and looked inside the darkness. Nothing seemed too out of place. But something in you felt wrong. You fumbled for the nearest lantern and lit the match.

Shadows marched across the walls. Your eyes flickered to the bedrooms. You moved to your parents first and swung the door open. Empty beds. 

Your heart was pounded in your ears. You moved back and ran to your room, your siblings’ room. The door hit the wall was a deafening boom. You about dropped the lantern. There was blood splattered across the wood floors. Sheets were stained crimson. You moved slowly into the room. There were tiny bodies on the ground. You started breathing hard but tried not to make so much sound. You started counting. 

Not everyone was here. You shook like a leaf as you backed out of the room and out of the house to the front. You raised the lantern high and padded down the lane. There were bodies you hadn’t even seen in the darkness. You didn’t know these bodies. You shoved each of them over as you found them. These were faces that meant nothing to you. 

You started to circle around the house, finding tiny evidence of a fight. Bullet cases, bodies, and tracks all said the same thing. Hostages had been taken but there had also been people get out of that house alive. You shook with anger now. Who would do this? 

Tears burned your eyes as you made your way back to the house to find a weapon. You knew that it was probably stupid to go walking out there with that lantern on. Anyone could see that and know you were done here by yourself. What if whoever did this was still nearby? You made your way to your parent’s room and started to dig. There was no sign of a fight in there. It seemed it all happened in the other bedroom. You sniffed hard to stop snot from dripping down your face as you fumbled for bullets in an old rifle your mama like to practice with. 

You heard the creak of floorboards coming from inside the house. You held your breath to hear soft footsteps heading towards the bedroom you were in. You raised the gun. 

Whoever it was coming closer. You eyed the shot up. They were about to enter the doorway. 

A single bullet came out of the barrel. You heard the groan and the body hit the ground. You scrambled forward with the rifle and looked down at the body. Your face shifted into horror. 

“Arthur?”


	11. Chapter 11

The collapsed body on the ground would haunt you. You felt like lifetimes passed by your eyes before you jerked into motion and scrambled to his form. You grabbed onto the front of his shirt with a hysterical noise bubbling in your throat. 

You shook him hard and relief only came when he groaned and started to sit up. “Damn, Honey. Your daddy taught you to shoot pretty well.” 

“Did I hit you?” Tears had started to form in your eyes. 

“It skimmed my ear but I’m okay. It probably looks worse. What happened?” 

A bubble of overwhelming emotion burst. Words fell from your mouth as quick as they could come. A terrible story was unfolded in front of Arthur Morgan in your dark lonely house. Your throat felt raw as you pushed past the uncomfortable burn that was building as the sorrow and rage pulled back and forth in your body. You were gripped by Arthur and pulled close as your whole body shook. You didn’t want to close your eyes. 

The haunting of tiny form laying in the dark would never leave. You simply stared into the abyss of the dark house as he held you. Your hands turned to fists, gripping the fabric of his shirt. You just needed something to hang onto. 

Anything. 

There was an unknown amount of time that passed between the two of you. Streaks of the morning sun started to creep into the house like an unwanted stranger. You shook like a leaf but made an attempt stand. Arthur was right beside you as he always was, strong as a rock. The two of you wandered outside. You patted him, trying to get his hands off of you to see if your legs could support yourself. You only needed to be strong for a little bit longer. 

You told him you were going to get a shovel and that he needed to wrap the little ones up. He never said anything but gave you a kind look that helped you through what you were about to do. 

The shovel was the heaviest thing you’d ever held. Your arms shook with every stab at the ground. The dirt split open slowly. By the time the sun was up and high in the sky, there were enough holes. 

The shaking had stopped. You were now just in the motions of things. Arthur was there with you but it felt like you were in a fog. You remember saying a few words after all the holes were filled. Arthur made headstones from rocks and sticks for every single one of them. You stared at the dry soil behind your childhood home. 

There was only silence now. 

You rode back with Arthur to the campsite. You had refused to go back inside that house so he had taken it upon himself to pack a few things. The gun came with you though. The weight of steel in your hand was a comfort. It was the only one to be had. 

Upon entering the camp, you were greeted as usual but it fell on deaf ears. You just buried your face into the face of his shirt and begged for air to no longer be needed. 

You did inhale though. You had to.

Arthur helped you off the horse and got your bags, leading you back where you had been in his tent not so long ago. He put you in the cot and covered you up before speaking but again, you heard nothing. 

You just stared at that flower in the vase. 

He disappeared from sight for a time. You didn’t know how long. Did it matter? At some point in your bed by yourself, a raspy sound came from your throat. 

Then a choked sound. 

Then a hard sob. 

It came like a storm from deep within your body. A horrible rush of emotions coming all at once until your body was shaking and tears were pouring down your face. A wail came from somewhere and you sat up, suffocating in your sorrow. 

Someone came to your side but the tears were blinding. Someone held you tight and whispered things to you. All you could do was scream into the world with all the rage you could muster. 

You stared up at the cloth of the tent at some point after all the energy was finally drained from your body. It was just a low vibration of your body twitching with whatever emotion was left over. You glanced to see who sat with you on the cot. Abigal was there. You released the grasp you had on her that you hadn’t even realized you had. She’d have marks on her skin from you. The shallow breath left your body and you looked at your own hands. They were calloused from working an old shovel that you had no business using. An angry red stained your fingers. Abigal was still gently caressing you. Your eyes lingered on for a moment trying to become coherent before you looked out the tent to see a few of the gang boys with Arthur. 

You realized it late evening now. Where had the day gone?

Abigal moved finally and you jerked to look at it. She patted your cheek softly before taking a piece of her sleeve and wiping your face. “I’ll be right back, Honey. You need to eat.” 

“I can’t eat. I’m not hungry.” You mumbled hoarsely. 

She just nodded and left for where you knew the stew was kept. Arthur left the group of men and came over to you, crouching on the ground. You looked at him and a half sob left your body. There was dried blood caked down the side of his right body and down his neck to his shirt. You had grazed his ear really good, noticing that there was some stitching in his flesh. 

“I’m fine.” He murmured real low. “Honey, you’re going to be staying here for a while. The boys and I have looked at the farm and gunna take care of it until more can be done.” 

You just nodded. There were no words left to say.


	12. Chapter 12

Fall turned to winter. The snow melted and spring flowers replaced the blanket of cold.

It was warm again.

But this brought no comfort. There was no joy. There were no small children to take running through the fields of flowers. There was no one to help tend to fields.

This was a different life.

This was a different time.

Grief kept your bed-bound for as long as the leaves changed colors and died. The ache paled and you could finally move when the snow was taller than your knees.

That’s when something clicked. You went with Charles on hunts. Arthur has stayed with you as long as possible before he was pulled away on business. You had to do something with your life. You had to continue on before the ache in your body consumed your whole.

Charles was the one that got the wheels turning in the right direction. You had itched to get out of camp. Everything was becoming dull. The two of you had gone for rabbits.

It wasn’t anything too riveting. You came back with rabbits. You watched him clean them and prepare them to be made into food.

It went from rabbits to bigger game. Soon, the hunt became the highlight of your life. Once it became more challenging was when you started to feel something.

The two of you became close friends by the time winter was melting. You had seen Arthur just a few times between jobs he was doing. Everything he came back, you could see waves of relief washing over him. It did something to you as well. It felt good to know you weren’t a constant worry to him. It also made it easier to feel better. It almost became a challenge. You wanted to be stronger every time he came home.

You wanted to return to some former shape of yourself.

Charles taught you how to shoot in those months. You had been good to a certain extent but you were taught to shoot things that were standing still. It was a whole different rodeo to shoot moving targets.

Then came blades. He taught you the back and forth of a knife. You learned how to clean almost everything you killed. You weren’t good at this kind of thing back at the farm. But that had not been for survival.

You felt like you were able to stand on your two feet so you took to learn under someone else.

Mr. Pearson was happy for the help. It was even better when the training of your mother came in hand. You were good at cooking.

The two of you passed the hours by you asking questions about his life. Mr. Pearson was eager to speak about the navy. You felt like a sailor yourself by the end of it all. You shared your mother’s recipes with him as well, telling him what she would do. The cookings of a butcher compared to a mother are vastly different but there could be a lot shared. Towards the end of winter, the two of you parted ways but not without you telling him that if he needed help, don’t be afraid to ask.

Arthur came back again to find you a cook. The hours were passing without much heartache anymore and he could tell. The romance between you two had been put on hold. You did not have the energy or the time to share yourself. But now was different.

You recalled your days to him by the fire one night while he was back. The flames were dancing in the reflection of his eyes as you dared to talk more than you had talked in half a year. The words just came forth. It was a flood. It was everything thought, breath, action, or intent that you had done since he was gone. The smile on his lips made you smile. Oh, how you missed that.

You inhaled deeply, filling your lungs after all the words left your mouth. “And how are you?”

“Just fine, Honey.” He reached forward and took your hand. “I’m doing just fine.”

“Good.” You smiled, looked down at his hand to clasp it between your own. It was one of the last cold nights before spring fully hit. “I need to say something, Arthur.”

“Go ‘head.” A seriousness fell over the conversation.

“I…never got to properly thank you…for everything.” Your fingers skimmed the calluses of his hard-working hands. “I don’t know what I would have done without all of you here. You’ve been very important to me for a long time. It means everything..”

There was a small silence before Arthur moved, getting on the ground to close the distance between the two of you. “Always know that no matter what happens or what changes, Imma always here for ya no matter what ya need.”

You smiled down at him for a brief moment. “I can always count on ya, Arthur. I hope to get back to how things were or close to that”

“Don’t rush yourself now. This ain’t something easy.”

You nodded in agreement. “That’s true. But I gotta ask something.” He motioned for you to go ahead. Your gaze fixed on the flames behind him as they burned ashes into the air. “I need you to teach me something.”

“Anything.”

“I need to know how to hunt those bastards down.”

Arthur stood up, a shadow against the light as he reached out to gently stroke your hair. “You don’t even gotta ask.”


End file.
